ITV Denim triumphs at Global Denim Awards 2016 with the Dutch designer Anbasja Blanken

ITV Denim has been awarded the prestigious Global Denim Awards 2016, for the second time after its success just two years ago, in what has become one of the most important international competitions associated with the world of indigo fabrics. The competition, like every year, was held in Amsterdam at the same time as the Kingpins Show, and on 26 October the Italian company was selected as winner, up against 11 large-scale international denim manufacturers. The success of ITV this year is characterised by its collaboration with a young and promising Dutch designer, Anbasja Blanken, who surprised the panel with a literally “sparkling” collection.

Restyling denim from a semi-couture perspective, this collection addresses women directly, communicating strength, elegance and beauty.
The expertise made available by ITV for the designer is truly unique: the creative concept was developed on the basis of innovative experimentation on the yarn, aimed at achieving an actual “glow in the dark” effect. This idea derives from the designer’s intent to recreate the depths of the sea world, where the absence of light is in actual fact a stimulus for transformation, reminiscent of the fluorescence and brightness typical of many marine species. Explosions of coral, pearls, floral embroideries and luminescent woven fabrics, for a collection which highlights all the artisan skills of ITV, involving also the use of laser cutting and recycled fabrics, for a denim which moves on from its origins in order to portray a new style of luxury.

The Global Denim Awards have reached the third edition in 2016; it is an event which in a very short time has doubled its attendance figures and now involves 11 denim manufacturing companies in collaboration with as many designers, which presented 11 Capsule Collections with five total looks, including treatments and washings.

The audience con-sisted of 600 professionals from the denim international scene who followed the event, while a panel made up of the greatest denim experts and designers in The Netherlands was in charge of appraising the collections on display in terms of general appearance, innovative character and creative use of denim in the project. Finally, a prize was awarded to the winning company and 10,000 euro to the winning designer.

Barbara Gnutti, ITV’s commercial manager comments: “This really was a big challenge for us. We have been able to or-ganize and coordinate a perfect teamwork that involved us all on multiple levels, everyone doing their best. This is why win-ning this competition represents a wonderful and memorable experience, with great satisfaction for the whole ITV team”.

After the victory at the Global Denim Awards 2014 (with the designer Jonathan Christopher), this new success by ITV bears witness to the extraordinary excellence of this Italian company. Research, innovation and unique proposals, always combined with top-of-the-range collaborations, are the lynchpins that represent the true added value of ITV, a company which – thanks to this spirit – is able to stand out from major players in the denim industry.

“When ITV won the Global Denim Awards 2014 with Jonathan Christopher, a real “elective affinity” with the designer was established, which still continues today. The same magical chemistry characterised our relationship with Anbasja, a pathway which developed a truly innovative idea starting from the curiosity of experimentation, the quest for excellence and the ability to bring our and her extraordinary potential to fruition”, says Paolo Gnutti – R&D at ITV Denim. “An approach which shows how, in spite of it all, Italian genuine arts and crafts are always able to impress”.